Inflated discus



Dec. 16, 195 8 R. G. LEISE YINFLATED Discus Filed Jan. 16, 1956 2Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

8 RAl li'H G. LEISE MrM United States Patent OfiFice 2,864,201 P t nt d.Dec- .6 1.9 8

INFLATED DISCUS Ralph G. :Leise, Seattle, Wash. Application January 16,1956, Serial No. 559,404

4 Claims. (CI. 46-30) This present invention relates to equipmentprimarily intended for water sports and more especially to a discus thatis intended for throwing in the same general manner that a full weightsports discus is thrown. Special means are provided to insure thatthedisc will retain the general shape of a discus without being undulydistorted bylow pressure inflation and at the same time the margins ofthe disc mustbe so constructed that even though .they are reinforced toretain their disc-like shape they oldest sport elements,beingpopularized by'the Grecian games .at'a very early date.

a When provided however in a .unitof reduced weight and reasonablysoft,yetretaining the disc-like shape, the discus provides an unusual itemvof interest. This present device, while it may be made in a .varietycfsizes to suit children or adults is intended to be thrown as a discusaudit is interesting to note the wide variety ,ofentertaining games thatcan be played with such a.device whenit isrealized that the discus canbe spun and will take on unusual skipping-like actions when landing onthe Water. -It is quite different from a .ball in thatit can be skippedon the water, it can be twirledso as .tomakeit deflect at wide angleswhenit meets the .water substantially flat and then when inclined soastomeet the ,water-onits edge a wide variety of actions can beobtainedvand these all develop skills and skill, after all, is the'basisfor lasting enjoyment in any game device.

It is intended that this present disc-like device he inflated with,preferably, just the pressure that can be exerted by ones lungs blowinginto the device. The device is preferablygiven considerable weightwiththe bulk of the weightoccurring in: the actual Wallthickness of theinflatable member. Further, it has been found desirable to provide arelatively heavyenforced peripheralrnargin to the end that there will beno distortion of the discus when inflated. The device, may be made ofany moldable or fusible sheet material such as rubber or its variousderivatives in the field of synthetic rubbers or many of the variousplasticsthat are pliable and lendthemselves to bondingand thellike fromsheet stock may-be used in the construction. of the device. It isimportant that the inflation pressure be kept to a minimum to thecendthat the device itself can safely be made reasonably heavy to provideskipping properties when landing on the water. Also considerable weightis required if the device is going to be thrown any distance. By way ofdetermining weight, thestandard .discus weighs 4 pounds 6.4 ounces andthis should be considered a maximum for the largerv adult sizes ofsay'24 inch diameter, as satisfactory Weight for the 12 inch diameter isapproximately 2 pounds. It is desirable however that the type ofmaterial used in the device-be relatively resilient by its naturalproperties and "that inflation be" kept to a low enough level so thatthe 2 device, while reasonably heavy, will not be able to injure aperson who is accidentally hit as by the edge of the device while inflight. V The principal object of this invention therefore is to providea game device of inflated discus form for use in Water sports.

A further object of this invention is to provide a discuslike inflatedform which is peripherally reinforced so as to assist in preserving thediscus-like form when the device isinflated.

A further object of this invention is to provide -a; d isc u slike watersport device which is characterized by having heavy walls to the endthat it will greatly resist any tendency to distort the discus-likeshape when the device is inflated and will also permit throwing the sameacousiderable distance. I

A furtherobject of this present invention is to provide an inflatedwater game device in the general form of a discus which is characterizedby -constr uctions which render it at all times pliantand .yieldable tothe end that it will not become a hazard when thrown at a person in thewater.

'CLlS.

Further objects, advantages and capabilities will be apparent from thedescription and disclosure in the drawings, or may be comprehended orare inherent inthe device. 5 v

In the. drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of an inflated water sport device of discus formwhich is the subject ofthis present application;

Figure 2 is aside elevation of the device of Figure 1 Figure 3illustratesthe air filling opening employed in this device; i '7 vFigure 4 illustrates the air filling tubefolded inunder the protectingover-laycovers; i

Figure 5 is a fragmentary cross .sectional view taken along the line555, of Figure 1 and showingthe air filling tube and valve arrangement;

Figures 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 are viewstakenas along the line 66 of Figure.2 and showing the variant forms-of the peripheral reinforcement forthis device.

Referring more particularlyto thedisclosure .in-the drawings thenumerals Hand 14 designate respectively the two half. discmembersirnaking upmy inflatable dis- These two membersare securedtogether by appropriate means on their abutting surfaces, as 16, whichadds to the strength and rigidity of the unit. Each of the half members,as 12 and 14 is preferably preformed as by molding from suitablemoldable material. This material should have ,basiccharacteristics.suchthat when cornpleted it will be yieldableanddefinitely soft, to the touch. This is an importantvcharacteristic ofthis device in that it needs to retain its discus formwhen inflated butat the same time it must not present a solid. edge otherwise it will behazardous for use, particularly in water sports,. as someone might heinjur'edby .thesame beingthrown through the air and hitting them.

One half member, as 12,. is provided .with thefilling tube 318. This,tubepasses through andis fixedly secured to a continuous web, as 20,which is formed as part of portion 12. Disposed above membrance 20 aretwogcover portions, 'as. 22- and 24. These may be parted after theshowing of Figure 3 so that tube;18 may be withdrawn through thedistorted slit and air introduced into the discus, preferablybeingsupplied by the lung power ofa person. Tube 18 is secured togetheratitslowermost end and flattened as at 30, and then. theflattenedportionis slit soi s to provide a WorkingThornas type valve.This admits air into the device but normally resists air being forcedout. Means are provided however so that the tnbe 18 can be pulled upfareno-ugh, by distorting membrane 20, so that the finger and thumb ofone hand may be used to distort the slitted portion 30 and thus thedevice can be deflated, as for carrying or-storing.

In view of the fact that there are many materials from which this devicecanbe made, it therefore becomes desirable to have a peripheral rimeflect that willstiffen the discus and tend to cause it to retain itsdisc-like form yet same in place.

Where neoprene and like materials are employed then it is desirable touse the general form as illustrated in Figures- 6 and 8 in which theouter margins of members 12 and 14 are but slightly thickened so as toprovide the joining lines 40 and 50 respectively. The neoprene normallyis much firmer than rubber but less firm than the plastics that havebeen found suitable for this type of equipment. However, it is desirableto reinforce the -periphery of the discus and two forms of reinforcementare illustrated. The form in Figure 6 wherein a rubber insert42 isprovided which is also provided with what is, -in effect, an'annulargroove that results in the feathering out of insert 40 as at 44 and 45.This insert should be cemented in place so that it is a fixed componentof the device. In such instances where somewhat denser materials areused but are of the same general family, the insert may preferably beformed with a convex inner face, as is illustrated in Figure 8 where themodified insert, as 52, is provided with a rounded surface as 54 so thatthe margins of members 12 and 14, as at 56 and 58, may tend to wraparound the curved surface 54 and thus provide a softer arrangementwhich, in view of the denser material used in members 12 and 14, willgive or yield about the same and will provide as satisfactory deflectionas will 'the form in Figure 6.

In Figures 7 and 9 a third species of reinforcement has beenillustrated. Here the material of which members "12 and 14 are made, itis assumed to be the newer plastics of the polyethylene type which arepliable but in any appreciable thickness become quite firm due to thedensity of the plastic material itself. Under these conditions it is notdesirable to particularly thicken the peripheral edges of members 12 and14, but rather to have only the minimum juncture as at 60 and then touse fillers as 62 and 64 of sponge rubber. This will permit the maximumdeflection of the near peripheral portions of members 12 and 14 as areindicated at 66 and 67. As in the showing of Figures 6 and 8, two formsof this insert, as 62 and 64, are shown one with the concave innersurface and the other with the convex inner surface. The form shown inFigure 9 is comparable'to Figure 8 and permitting the maximum deflectionof the stock forming members 12 and 14 out near the outer margins. Ithas been found that in this form of treatment that the sponge rubberitself is not a strength giving member for this device and it istherefore desirable to employ an additional strengthening member. In theform shown in Figure 7 this is provided by having a rubber ring similarto an O-ring or the type of rings that are employed as drive belts oncertain low powered electrical units. This is illustrated at 68. In theform shown in Figure 9 the strengthening cord is indicated as acontinuous metal wire, as 70. This wire or wire strands should, however,be of sufliciently reduced size with respect to the rubber cord 68, thatit will not, in itself, give rigidity to the peripheral edge but ratherwill be yieldable and can be distorted and then have sufficientresilience to restore itself.

To obtain a weight of the discus comparable to the standard discus, i.e., about 4 pounds 6.4 ounces in a 24 inch diameter and about 2 poundsin a 12 inch diameter, it has been discovered that, with most of thematerials discussed and considering the thickened rim the wallthicknesses should range between about of an inch and A; of an inch, e.g., the minimum thickness for the maximum diameter discus and themaximum thickness for the minimum diameter thickness. The materialsshould have sufficient strength and thickness to tend to normally holdtheir molded concavity in the absence of external forces. To approximatea true discus shape and considering the flight characteristics of thisinflated discus and associated problems, it has been discovered thatdisc members 12, 14 preferably should form spherical segments inside oftheir rim margins and that the ratio between thickness and diameter ofthe discus preferably should be approximately 1:3.

It is believed that it will be clearly apparent from the abovedescription and the disclosure in the drawings that the inventioncomprehends a novel construction of an inflated discus. 7

Having thus disclosed my invention, I claim:

1. An inflated discus, comprising: a hollow body having substantiallythe shape of a discus which is circu lar in outline and has considerablethickness in its center, said body being formed of resilient mateiraland said body having a thickened rim which thereby has a greaterresistance to distortion than the remainder of said body, said thickenedrim being formed by an interior annular insert secured in place andshaped to hold the body walls in the desired rim-like disposition, thematerial forming the insert being less dense than the material fromwhich the body is formed and the inner face of said insert being concaveand being feathered out along said body walls, and manually controllablevalve means governing ingress and egress of air to and from said hollowbody.

2. An inflated discus, comprising: a hollow body having substantiallythe shape of a discus which is circular in outline and has considerablethickness in its center, said body being formed of resilient materialand said body having a thickened rim which thereby has a greaterresistance to distortion than the remainder of said body, and manuallycontrollable valve means governing ingress and egress of air to and fromsaid hollow body, in which said thickened rim is formed by an annularinsert of sponge-like material secured in place and shaped to hold thebody at the rim in proper disposition, said insert having a concaveinner face with the edges feathered against the body roll and a centralannular member imbedded in that insert rod-shaped and having a higherdensity than the material from which said body is formed.

3. An inflated discus, comprising: a hollow body having substantiallythe shape of a discus which is circular in outline and has considerablethickness in its center, said body being formed of resilient materialand said body having a thickened rim which thereby has a greaterresistance to distortion than the remainder of said body, and manuallycontrollable valve means governing ingress and egress of air to and fromsaid hollow body, in which said thickened rim is formed by an annularinsert of sponge-like material secured in place and shaped to hold thebody at the rim in proper disposition, said insert having a convex innerface and having an annular wire member embedded therein.

4. The subject matter of claim 1, in which said insert has an innermargin shaped to support the walls of the discus and insure that, underdistortion, the walls will take on smooth curves instead of showing asharp line of support.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS593,264 Wolcott Nov. 9, 1897 1,266,482 Kamrass May 14, 1918 1,287,429Price Dec. 10, 1918 1,442,900 OConnor 4 Jan. 23, 1923 2,134,063Turchanyi u Oct. 25,1938 2,698,028 Leeet a1. Dec. 28, 1954

